“We are not limited to being only architects. The options are more than you can imagine.”

For Joselyn Fonseca, a Bachelor of Architecture student at USC, days start early and are packed from start to finish with work, classes, studio, meetings, and extracurricular activities.

SCHEDULE

“I commute from Hollywood so I usually leave home at 7:00 am to arrive at my work study job. After that, I have electives and end my classes with studio from 2:00-6:00 pm,” Fonseca continued. “In the evenings, I attend a Zumba class or meetings relating to organizations I am involved with.”

DIVERSITY AND COMMUNITY

“Coming from a Hispanic background” and originally from Lima, Peru, Fonseca had been able to find what she calls her “second family” at USC through the Latino Alumni Association and a great professional network through the Architectural Guild. Fonseca’s organization serves a similar purpose at the USC School of Architecture. “Many students are glad that an organization focusing on empowering and inspiring minority students is now active at the School of Architecture,” said Fonseca. “No matter where you come from, you will find a piece of home on campus.”

LOS ANGELES

Fonseca is currently studying abroad in Rome, where she says she like to explore cities during the weekends, but she still had great things to say about the perks of being in Los Angeles. “You never run out of resources in a city like Los Angeles. It’s great that projects assigned to us are based in LA. We are able to physically go [to] the assigned site and analyze it. Not only that, but there is also a huge selection of firms that you might want to intern for,” said Fonseca, referring to this abundance of opportunities as LA’s “biggest asset.”